Page:PracticeOfChristianAndReligiousPerfectionV1.djvu/63

 not only  in  great  matters,  but  even  in  the  smallest,  is  said  to  be truly  liberal  towards  God,  and  in  return  God  will  recompense  him liberally. For God  is  always  pleased  to  make  those,  who  are  thus faithful to  him,  his  chief  favourites,  and  pours  his  blessings  on  them in greater  abundance;  nor  does  he  confine  himself  to  that  general assistance which  is  sufficient  to  resist  temptations,  but  he  bestows on them  special  and  efficacious  graces,  whereby  they  always triumph over  the  assaults  of  the  devil. But if  you  are  not  liberal towards God,  how  can  you  expect  he  should  be  so  towards  you,  and if you  offer  your  gifts  to  him  with  a  parsimonious  hand,  must  you not expect  that  he  will  treat  you  in  the  same  manner? If you  are afraid of  doing  too  much  for  him,  if  you  hold  always  the  compass in hand  to  measure  what  you  are  obliged  to  under  pain  of  sin,  and examine whether  the  omission  be  mortal  or  only  venial;  if,  in  fine, you intend  to  give  God  no  more,  than  what  you  think  to  be  precisely his  right,  you  plainly  shew  you  are  a  miser,  and  oblige  him to be  more  sparing  of  his  blessings  towards  you. For he  will  give you only  what  he  is  bound  to  by  his  promise,  to  wit,  he  will  give you the  general  aid  which  he  grants  to  every  one,  i.e.  such  aid  as is  necessary  and  sufficient  to  overcome  temptations;  but  you  have reason to  apprehend,  that  he  will  not  bestow  on  you  that  special and efficacious  grace,  which  he  usually  gives  to  those  who  deal more liberally  with  him,  and  it  is  to  be  feared,  that  for  want  of  it, you will  at  last  yield  to  the  assaults  of  the  enemy,  and  fall  into some grievous  crime.

It is  in  this  sense  we  are  to  understand  the  opinion  of  divines, and holy  men  in  general,  when  they  say  that  a  subsequent  sin  is usually  the  punishment  of  a  former,  because  by  our  first  sin  we render  ourselves  unworthy  of  God's  particular  grace,  and  thereby easily fall  into  a  second  sin. They also  say  the  same  of  venial sins, and  extend  it  even  to  very  slight  faults;  they  even  maintain that a  certain  negligence,  into  which  we  suffer  ourselves  to  fall,  is alone  sufficient  to  render  a  man  unworthy  of  this  special  and  efficacious grace,  by  aid  of  which,  he  would  have  overcome  the  temptation, and through  want  of  which  he  miserably  falls. Some of  them  explain in  the  same  manner  the  words  of  the  Wise  Man,  "  He  that contemneth  small  things,  shall  fall  by  little  and  little"  (Ecclus. xix.  1);  and  say,  that  in  consequence  of  this  neglect  and  contempt, we deserve  to  be  deprived  of  the  extraordinary  assistance  of  God's grace,  through  want  of  which  these  cold  and  tepid  Christians  afterwards run  into  great  disorders. Divines give  the  same  interpretation of  this  passage  of  the  Apocalypse:  "  Because  thou  art  neither